CSUN Returns to Action Saturday at Bulldog Mini Invite

Saturday, February 3

Redlands, Calif.

9:00 a.m.

California State University at Northridge

Redlands

Photo by: Steve Fitzgerald

CSUN Returns to Action Saturday at Bulldog Mini Invite

2/2/2024 9:40:00 AM | Women's Water Polo

NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---No. 23 CSUN Water Polo returns to the pool on Saturday morning at the University of Redlands' Bulldog Mini Invite. The Matadors face host Redlands at 9 a.m. before meeting Azusa Pacific at 11 a.m. Both games will be streamed via the SCIACNetwork.com.

LAST TIME OUT
CSUN dropped a pair of close matches last Saturday at the CBU Lancer Joust. The Matadors would fall in a back-and-forth battle with No. 25 Biola by a 12-10 score then fall 10-8 in the afternoon match to No. 18 San José State. Dorottya Telek led the way in scoring in both matches, scoring four versus Biola and three more against SJSU.

There would be eight ties in the Biola match before the Eagles scored four unanswered in the second half and held off CSUN down the stretch. CSUN dug an early 3-1 to start against the Spartans before eventually tying the match 4-4. SJSU would maintain a slim lead in the second half as CSUN trailed only by one in the fourth period but a comeback was not in the cards.

LEADING SCORERS
Dorottya Telek has already registered three-straight games of three goals or more this season while her 23 total goals lead the squad. Shelby Hovanesian has netted five goals to go with a team-high 11 assists. Helena Sandhagen has also hit the net five times while Anna Pal and Valeria Martinez have three goals apiece. Overall, CSUN has shot 45.5 percent from the field on the year.

IN FRONT OF THE CAGE
Meghan Lopez has appeared in three of four matches this season in front of the cage while registering 33 saves and a .559 save percentage. Also in net, Kiana Kellner has nine saves in 32 minutes of action and Samantha Bright has collected two saves in 16 minutes.

TELEK'S RECORD CHASE
Center Dorottya Telek continues to inch closer to breaking yet another CSUN goal record. Telek stands at 201 career goals and in fifth place on the all-time school scoring list. After passing Whitney Delgado (191 goals) earlier this season on the list, Telek is 11 goals away from surpassing Lindsy Duncan (211 goals) for fourth place. CSUN's top three all-time scorers are Madeleine Sanchez (229), Allison Brookes (222) and Marisa Young (216). Telek has already set a new single-season goal record (101 in 2023) and single-game goal marks (nine on Jan. 20, 2024) in her career.

SCOUTING REDLANDS
The Bulldogs are off to a 0-2 start to the season after losses last week to Fresno Pacific (12-4) and California Baptist (26-7). In this week's CWPA Division III top-25, Redlands is ranked No. 4. Emma Parker tops Redlands with five goals thus far this season while Anika Lundbaek has two goals. Evie Teets has played every minute in front of the cage with 11 saves.

Series History: CSUN holds a 12-1 all-time record with Redlands with victories in 12 consecutive matches. The teams last played on Feb. 25, 2023 with CSUN coming out on top 9-3 on the road.

SCOUTING AZUSA PACIFIC
The Cougars are 2-4 on the season with three-straight losses to top-10 ranked teams. Last Saturday, APU fell to fourth-ranked Hawai'i (18-3) and ninth-ranked Princeton (11-6). Montana White tops the team in goals with 12 to go with eight assists while Alexandra Akritidou has scored 11 goals. In net, Alex Airitam tops the team with 21 saves in 80 minutes.

Series History: The Matadors are 13-0 against Azusa Pacific in women's water polo. CSUN though has not played APU since Jan. 25, 2020 when CSUN prevailed 9-5.

#GoMatadors